Karen Andresen

Karen Andresen, a smart and witty woman, a wonderful mom, a kind and welcoming friend, and a great life partner to her husband Huck, passed away on Christmas Day. She was born in Madison, Wisconsin to parents Glen and Isabella Weld. Her arrival was much earlier than expected and she weighed in at just 1 pound, 13 ounces--she was dubbed the “Miracle Baby of Madison” by the local newspaper.

Her family moved to Duluth when she was still a baby, and other than a couple teenage years in Edina and a year in St. Paul, she spent most of the rest of her life in Duluth, and was a lifelong community leader and proud booster of her hometown. 

She graduated from Duluth East in 1961, and from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1965 with a degree in elementary education. During college she was president of her sorority, Gamma Omicron Beta, active with the Kirby Student Center, and was in the Homecoming Court, all while forging life-long friendships. She started attending UMD Bulldog hockey games, and became a decades-long season ticket holder. It was truly a life highlight for her (and Huck, too) when the Bulldogs won their first national championship in 2011. 

Karen and Huck met in high school and were together since 1960. They got married in July 1965, just before Huck’s third year of law school. As Huck says, she paid his way for that last year with her teaching salary from Cleveland Junior High School, where she spent her first year as an English teacher. They moved back to Duluth when Huck graduated in 1966, and Karen taught English at Woodland Junior High. When daughter Angie was born in 1970, she stopped teaching as a career, but teaching was in her blood, and so was volunteering. She became a dedicated volunteer with Right to Read, an adult literacy program. 

She went back to work in the 80s, starting her own company, Transition, Inc., a career counseling service. She was a huge proponent of women in the working world, and in sports, and she mentored and supported countless women and girls, including her own . She did an amazing job of balancing home and work life when that was somewhat atypical for women, and she succeeded in the corporate world even as she fielded constant phone calls from her kids during the work day about emergencies like someone not being able to find the chocolate chips or not knowing what was going to be served to them for dinner. 

Karen was an active member with the Duluth Junior League (and was honored as Sustainer of the Year in 2011), and board member for First Witness, a program helping children and families who have experienced abuse. She served on the Board of Advisors of the Labovitz School at UMD, overseeing the development of a variety of programs, volunteered for many years at Pilgrim Congregational Church, and served as a Duluth Chamber of Commerce Ambassador.

Golf was a huge part of her life from an early age, having learned to play from her parents, and she kept a low handicap–single digits for a time–for many years. When she went back to work, she made sure her schedule allowed her to be at Northland Country Club every Tuesday morning for women’s league, and every other Friday for Team Event. She and Huck also played together most Sundays, and much to the chagrin of her kids, she loved watching golf on TV. She was an NCC club champion, and was a two time winner (along with Huck) of the club’s Mr. & Mrs. Championship. She loved the camaraderie of golf, and the competition, and a sunny warm day on the course was one of her favorite things in the world.

She enjoyed ice cream, and a rum and coke in a tall glass. She had a passion for, and was very good at, hosting and entertaining, and she threw many great parties at the house on Third Street. Whether it was bridge club, Grandma’s Marathon parties, a post-golf tournament blow out, or family holiday gatherings, she made sure people had a great time, and made it look easy. She would tell you to always light candles, and always have some strategically placed bowls of M&Ms.

While Duluth was always home base, she was well-traveled–Scotland, France, Palm Desert, Lake Placid…mostly places where she and Huck could play golf or watch Bulldog hockey. Her family was a huge source of pride and joy–especially her kids and grandkids, but also parents Glen and Isabella, for whom she was a loving caregiver in their later years. 

Appropriately for an English teacher, she was great with words, and was a Scrabble master who had no problem crushing her kids. She loved crossword puzzles and word games, as well as multiple forms of solitaire. Her vocabulary was amazing, and she tried her best to make sure her kids knew how to use words correctly and to not say “like” unless they really meant “similar to.” 

When she suffered from dementia in her last years, she still loved sweets and she still wanted to take care of everyone. Her biggest concern was making sure that her kids and grandkids knew where they were sleeping that night.

Karen is survived by Huck, who was her rock and later her caregiver; kids Angie (Randy Larson), Briar (Sjur Midness), and Glen (Brianna); her grandkids Max, Maggie, Annika, Grete, Devin, Brynn, Cam, and Eddie; as well as her niece and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, brothers Dick and Jerry, and grandson Alex.

A service will be held on January 23, 2025 at Pilgrim Congregational Church in Duluth at 11:00 a.m., with a reception to follow at Northland Country Club. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the UMD Karen S. & Charles H. Andresen Scholarship at the Labovitz School for Business and Economics, or to First Witness.